Best armor for Low Rank and High Rank in Monster Hunter Wilds

Monster Hunter Wilds offers a variety of armor sets spread out over two rank tiers. While most of these sets are available to craft in their Low Rank and High Rank variants, others are exclusive to High Rank only. Every set of armor has a unique set bonus and different skills of varying levels, so knowing which ones are best for your build is integral to your Hunter Rank progression.

Best armor sets for Low Rank in Monster Hunter Wilds

When you begin the main campaign in Monster Hunter Wilds, you will start off at Low Rank by default. Low Rank quests are denoted by a blue star and start with one-star quests, peaking at three-star quests. Every large monster you slay or capture during these hunting quests will drop specific components that will help you craft Low Rank armor.

Specific armor sets would work better for you depending on your weapon type. These five armor sets will cover every type of playstyle you choose to opt for.

5) Hope Armor Set

Equipment skills:

• Divine Blessing (Level three)
• Stun Resistance (Level two)

The Hope Armor set is possibly the best beginner armor you can have in the early stages of the game. Anyone who has played Monster Hunter World knows how strong the Divine Blessing skill can be, especially early on when you lack any substantial defenses. You take reduced damage from any hit when the skill activates, making it highly useful in a pinch along with Stun Resistance.

This armor set doesn’t rank any higher because its defense stats are really low, and the armor quickly gets outclassed when Guardian Monsters start showing up.

4) Rey Dau Set

Equipment skills:

• Constitution (Level three)
• Latent Power (Level three)
• Thunderous Roar

The first Apex Predator in Monster Hunter Wilds drops components for a nifty armor set that works as a replacement for the Hope Armor set. Constitution helps sustain your stamina costs early into the game. Latent Power reduces your stamina usage even further while also increasing your affinity when the effect triggers.

Apex Predator sets have unique set bonus skills and Thunderous Roar is what you get with the Rey Dau set. This skill extends the duration of Latent Power every time it triggers.

3) Xu Wu Set

Equipment skills:

• Maximum Might (Level three)
• Stamina Surge (Level three)

The Xu Wu set provides some interesting bonuses with skills that synergize well with each other. First, you have Maximum Might, a skill that grants you bonus damage if you maintain a full bar of stamina. Secondly, Stamina Surge will allow you to maintain Maximum Might for as long as possible, passively speeding up your stamina regeneration at all times.

The Xu Wu set also provides decent elemental resistances, except for Ice, so you can use it against various early game monsters.

2) Guardian Rathalos Set

Equipment skills:

• Weakness Exploit (Level three)
• Intimidator (Level three)
• Scorcher

The Guardian Rathalos Armor is a powerful set that will help you onwards in your final push through the Low Rank part of the main questline. This set is all about offense with Weakness Exploit improving your affinity against monster weaknesses and their wounds. Intimidator will ensure that none of the smaller monsters nearby will interfere with your battle.

The unique Scorcher set bonus will give you a chance to deal bonus Fire damage with each attack, giving you a healthy mix of elemental and non-elemental damage.

1) Guardian Arkveld Set

Equipment skills:

• Flayer (Level three)
• Blight Resistance (Level three)
• Decimator

The game’s flagship monster provides the best armor for all your Low Rank hunting needs. The Guardian Arkveld set is great for chipping down big monsters with the Flayer skill, increasing your chance to inflict wounds. On the defensive front, Blight Resistance reduces the duration of all elemental blights on you, with the level three bonus completely nullifying every elemental blight.

The unique Decimator set bonus synergizes well with Flayer, recovering a portion of your health every time you destroy wounds on large monsters.

Best armor sets for High Rank in Monster Hunter Wilds

After you complete the first half of the main campaign and defeat Zoh Shia, you will enter the High Rank portion of the game. This part offers more variety in armor, with even stronger monsters to take down. High Rank quests are denoted by an orange star and go from four-star quests to eight-star quests. High Rank armor sets offer different skills compared to their Low Rank counterparts.

The best High Rank armor sets should work for almost any type of playstyle. Pick the ones with the skills you want the most for your build and make sure you keep them upgraded.

5) Death Stench Alpha Set

Equipment skills:

• Resentment (Level five)
• Ambush (Level three)
• Stun Resistance (Level three)
• Intimidator (Level two)

While the Death Stench Armor set isn’t the best High Rank armor in the game, its stats and skills can be quite good while you’re progressing through HR20 to HR30. Having a level five Resentment skill comes in handy whenever you take damage by granting a powerful damage boost. Ambush rewards sneak attacks by granting you even more bonus damage after a successful sneak attack.

Intimidator prevents smaller monsters from attacking you, which is great for fights against pack leader monsters like the Congalala or the Blangogo. Additionally, the Death Stench Layered Armor is one of the more fearsome-looking ones, making it great for all of you fashion hunters out there.

4) Guild Ace Alpha Set

Equipment skills:

• Peak Performance (Level five)
• Constitution (Level five)
• Foray (Level five)

The Guild Ace Alpha set is the first main armor set of Rarity Level eight and also the easiest armor set of that particular rarity level to craft. The defensive stats of the armor hold up well until you start hunting Tempered Apex Predators. This armor set affects your resources, with Peak Performance granting you bonus damage when your health is full, while Constitution keeps your stamina as high as possible.

On the other hand, Foray grants you even more damage with improved affinity as long as you maintain Poison or Paralysis status effects on monsters. If you’re a Bowgun user, be it Light or Heavy Bowgun, this armor set will work well for you.

3) Dober Alpha Set

Equipment skills:

• Constitution (Level five)
• Stamina Surge (Level three)
• Marathon Runner (Level three)
• Mushroomancer (Level two)

The Dober Armor set is a fan-favorite from Monster Hunter World that makes its return in Wilds. While the armor’s stats might not be the best, it does one thing in particular: benefits builds that consume a lot of stamina. Marathon Runner and Stamina Surge are two skills that negate stamina consumption and improve stamina regeneration, making this armor set almost mandatory for Bow builds.

Constitution further improves your stamina management by reducing the stamina cost of defensive actions like evading and blocking, making it an essential component of any weapon build.

2) Gore Beta Set

Equipment skills:

• Evade Window (Level four)
• Constitution (Level three)
• Coalescence (Level one)
• Antivirus (Level one)
• Flinch Free (Level one)
• Black Eclipse

The powerful Gore Magala set arrives quite late in the game but it brings along several promising skills. Having a fourth level Evade Window is amazing against faster monsters like Arkveld or Gore Magala itself, granting you a bigger invulnerability window. Coalescence is great for elemental builds since the skill increases elemental damage after recovering from ailments.

If the ailment you recover from is Frenzy, Antivirus will also increase your affinity. The unique Black Eclipse skill inflicts Frenzy, increasing your attack power temporarily. This bonus is then increased further after recovering from the ailment.

1) Guardian Arkveld Beta Set

Equipment skills:

• Flayer (Level four)
• Weakness Exploit (Level three)
• Blight Resistance (Level two)
• Partbreaker (Level one)
• Elemental Absorption (Level one)
• Decimator

Once again, the Guardian Arkveld Armor set tops the list for being the best armor set in the base game. Offense is the best defense with this set with Flayer and Partbreaker allowing you to tear through even the toughest monster hides. Add the unique Decimator buff to heal every time you destroy a wound on a monster and you have a powerful set of armor that works in every situation.

Elemental Absorption and Blight Resistance are perfect defensive buffs that will especially help when you’re hunting powerful Apex Predators. If you don’t have the right Decorations, craft the Guardian Arkveld Alpha set for even more levels on your skills.

One final thing to note is that crafting a full set of High Rank armor will unlock its corresponding Layered Armor for use when you customize your character.